It was roughly 10 o'clock on Saturday night, and crews were looking over their machines and packing up after a night of racing at Lincoln Speedway.

Danny Dietrich captured his second win of the season at the speedway and fourth overall in the Sprint Car division. But he wasn't the star of the show.

That honor belonged to Hoosier Tire.

The early returns are in, and the company is getting high marks in its first season as Sprint Car racing's official tire. At least that's the case in central Pennsylvania and in the eyes of Brent Marks, winner of four races this season.

Marks placed second to Dietrich on this night. Afterwards, he fired off a text to the Hoosier hierarchy, commending them for their efforts.

“I just wanted to compliment them on the wear and that we could run [the tires] another week if we wanted to,” Marks said. “They are still good enough to run this coming week. Hoosier has done a good job this year.”

Marks also passed along some staggering numbers.

The left rear he raced at Lincoln had 55 laps on it. The right rear, a jaw-dropping 70. And there was still life left either to race or sell the tire to a 358 Sprint Car team.

Regardless of what Marks does, the longevity displayed by the Hoosier's product is cutting into his tire bill, one of team's biggest expenses.

“I would say it's cut our costs by a quarter,” Marks said. “At the end of the year is when we really tally it up but if we keep getting this kind of wear, I figure it will cut our bill by a quarter or a half from last year.

“Last year, we spent $30,000 on tires. If we cut that by a quarter or a half, that is a lot of money.”

A year ago, drivers and teams complained about the wear of the Goodyear Tires. There was also an issue with supply.

That hasn't been the case in 2013. Not only are teams able to use the Hoosiers a second week, they have resold the used tires to other divisions and recouped their expense.

“We are reselling a lot of tires this year,” Marks said. “We couldn't do that last year, but the Goodyear tires weren't lasting.

“Even on a decent night at Lincoln, we still blistered a tire. It was rare that we could run a Goodyear two weeks in a row.”

Teams aren't the only ones pleased with the results.

Track promoters have noticed the difference. Not only in the wear of the tire itself, but also the product on the track.

The racing has been pretty good. Even if a driver wins from the pole, there is plenty of passing through the pack.

“I'm happy with it,” said Alan Kreitzer, a member of the management team at Lincoln. “Guys have told me the wear factor is better and that the tires last a couple weeks.

“I think the racing has been good. It's also provided a secondary market, and I think it's helped our 358 division.”

Sounds like a win-win.

The true test is still yet to come. When the weather changes, so does track conditions. Tires can take a beating after a day of sunshine and brutal, hot temperatures.

“I'm not really concerned,” Kreitzer said. “Our guys are using softer tires and if it becomes an issue, Hoosier has provided another option to go to.”

Said Marks, “It's a tough one to call. I think it will continue as it is now as long as everyone puts the effort into preparing their racetrack.

“As long as [promoters] keep the tracks decent and raceable and it isn't single file on the bottom, you will see good tire wear.”

NOTES

-Williams Grove Speedway recently announced that it was going to allow teams to use as many tires as desired in a night of racing. In the past, teams had to run the same tire in qualifying and the feature. Lincoln and Port Royal Speedway already had this rule in place.

-It's never too early to talk about Pennsylvania Sprint Car Speed Week. Look for Kyle Larson to participate in select shows during the nine-race series as his NASCAR Nationwide Series permits. He competed at Williams Grove a week ago and placed 12th.